Update Hype Gauge

[Shna_na]

I've noticed that some people around the forums are totally against the idea of hyping up an update as massively as Squad have with this one without releasing it shortly after. I'd like to see the wider opinion on this matter.

As we all know by now 0.23.5 and 0.24 are coming soonâ„¢ and Squad have really been publicising it - 24 hours of Stream time dedicated to showing the update, public gatherings and conferences at events, posts left right and center about the features and improvements that have been added - and it's got me really excited for the update. Usually, however, Squad tend to keep this things a little less explosive; Information about updates is generally kept somewhat hush-hush and is not overly hyped by the developers and the media group. Sure, some upcoming aspects of the game are unveiled, but we don't tend to get as every little detail as we have here.

On one hand, some people see this as a great thing: it lets us know that this huge amount of stuff is coming, and fast. On the other hand, others see this as a bad thing: all the new features are being spoiler for us, the air of adventuring a new and mysterious update has been stripped from us because of unavoidable spoilers about what's coming. For some, the hype has worn off - the game seemed so close to being finished and yet it still isn't released. I'm sure that we all appreciate the immense effort that Squad go to for us to have a stable and enjoyable game, and being against the whole idea of hyping an update as far behind its release date as this update has been doesn't mean that you're against the development team. So where do you stand on the matter? Are you pro-hype or pro-adventure, pro-anticipation or pro-surprise?

[LethalDose]

I think there hype was well executed but horrifically planned. They should have held off on the big marathon until they were ready to launch or at least until they could provide a date.

They created a mess, again, with their poor & vague communication.

[Guest]

I don't really care. What I want to see is a steady supply of dev blogs/articles telling me about the work going into this game. Being a developer myself I am quite tolerant of release setbacks and a lack of solid release dates because I realize development can take unexpected turns or clients (NASA in this case) can have certain expectations of quality.

So long as SQUAD keeps communicating, I'm good.

E: Also, your poll is terribly skewed. I could care less about the hype but am quite happy about the level of information given regarding this update.

Edited March 31, 2014 by regex

[Boosterspice]

I believe that maybe everything should have started around this time, if Squad knew that they would release sometime in April. It is good that they polish the update before releasing, however they should have maybe started the "hype" right before final polishing, so that they knew roughly the release date. Personally, as a long-time fan, I don't feel let down, mostly because I know that there are always some bugs that hide until the last minute.

[Guest]

It's easy to have massive setbacks when you are developing software - however the results of this work both ways.

We can argue that they didn't know there would be this many setbacks, but you can argue that they should have held back because there can always be setbacks.

[nohelmet]

I am super-excited for the update and I'm really looking forward to it, but on the other hand I feel there is too much hype. I'm probably not the only one who has been avoiding the videos and related threads because I don't want spoilers! So from my perspective the level of anticipation before the videos was just right.

[Shna_na]

I think there hype was well executed but horrifically planned. They should have held off on the big marathon until they were ready to launch or at least until they could provide a date.

I agree that the marathon should have been done on the release day instead of being over a week before. Even better, it should have been one 24 hour marathon and at the end of it the update could be released. I'm fine with the waiting part, but the stream just came too soon. There's also a few too many spoilers for me, which is why my I selected the 7/8 option in the poll. Sure, give us spoilers, I love that, but don't tell us everything that's going to be in the update. I like trying to figure out the new stuff and seeing something that I didn't know was going to be added and getting all excited. There's been a little bit of over-hyping here.

I don't really care. What I want to see is a steady supply of dev blogs/articles telling me about the work going into this game.

-snip-

So long as SQUAD keeps communicating, I'm good.

There is a Devblog that the team run, I'm not sure if you're aware of it. Every Tuesday they give us an update of what's been happening (Devnote Tuesday).

[macegee]

hype

1. Excessive publicity and the ensuing commotion: the hype surrounding the murder trial.

2. Exaggerated or extravagant claims made especially in advertising or promotional material: "It is pure hype, a gigantic PR job" (Saturday Review).

3. An advertising or promotional ploy: "Some restaurant owners in town are cooking up a $75,000 hype to promote New York as 'Restaurant City, U.S.A.'" (New York).

4. Something deliberately misleading; a deception: "[He] says that there isn't any energy crisis at all, that it's all a hype, to maintain outrageous profits for the oil companies" (Joel Oppenheimer).

hyped, hyp·ing, hypes

To publicize or promote, especially by extravagant, inflated, or misleading claims: hyped the new book by sending its author on a promotional tour.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hype

Promotion != hype. Hype is when promotion is applied in a disrespectful way. Thus hype == disrespecting the audience.

The problem with SQUAD (before 24 hour stream) was that they promoted stuff with big empty nothing. They still (!!!) haven't published any info from the panel they did with NASA. But they hyped it using words "soon" and even "very soon". That's disrespectful. It took them ages to publish stuff (for us here) they've showed to everyone on SXSW. That's, again, disrespectful.

Now, 24 hour marathon stream. Many (including me) thought they would release it afterwards, as they did before. But they didn't. Some people got offended. I, actually, did not, since they haven't promised to do so. I'm quite okay, got other stuff to do.

What I am against is the usage of vague statements. You have to be definitive, or otherwise, not to speak at all, IMO.

[timsfitz]

Yeah given all the info they released and the media I was expecting the update last week. Ive checked steam countless times to see if Kerbal had been updated, but no. I'm hoping tomorrow. If not Faster Than Light is getting a massive update on Thursday so I can't wait to play that as well.

[Shna_na]

I am super-excited for the update and I'm really looking forward to it, but on the other hand I feel there is too much hype. I'm probably not the only one who has been avoiding the videos and related threads because I don't want spoilers! So from my perspective the level of anticipation before the videos was just right.

While I don't want spoilers, I haven't been avoiding the threads. Hype is just too much for me to avoid them, even though I know that I'll only be less excited when the update actually comes out than I would if I'd have just left some things unspoiled.

I believe that maybe everything should have started around this time, if Squad knew that they would release sometime in April. It is good that they polish the update before releasing, however they should have maybe started the "hype" right before final polishing, so that they knew roughly the release date. Personally, as a long-time fan, I don't feel let down, mostly because I know that there are always some bugs that hide until the last minute.

It's easy to have massive setbacks when you are developing software - however the results of this work both ways.

We can argue that they didn't know there would be this many setbacks, but you can argue that they should have held back because there can always be setbacks.

While I do agree with this, I also think that they should still have had some hype when they felt ready to do so, just not as much as there was. When it gets down to polishing off the specks, that's when all the hype should start.

[Tex_NL]

I absolutely do NOT agree SQUAD is hyping up the coming updates. It's not SQUAD but rather, as usual, the community that has a bad case of update fever.

[Guest]

I absolutely do NOT agree SQUAD is hyping up the coming updates. It's not SQUAD but rather, as usual, the community that has a bad case of update fever.

They're not hyping the update? Are you living under a rock.

[Shna_na]

hype

1. Excessive publicity and the ensuing commotion: the hype surrounding the murder trial.

2. Exaggerated or extravagant claims made especially in advertising or promotional material: "It is pure hype, a gigantic PR job" (Saturday Review).

3. An advertising or promotional ploy: "Some restaurant owners in town are cooking up a $75,000 hype to promote New York as 'Restaurant City, U.S.A.'" (New York).

4. Something deliberately misleading; a deception: "[He] says that there isn't any energy crisis at all, that it's all a hype, to maintain outrageous profits for the oil companies" (Joel Oppenheimer).

hyped, hyp·ing, hypes

To publicize or promote, especially by extravagant, inflated, or misleading claims: hyped the new book by sending its author on a promotional tour.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hype

Promotion != hype. Hype is when promotion is applied in a disrespectful way. Thus hype == disrespecting the audience.

The problem with SQUAD (before 24 hour stream) was that they promoted stuff with big empty nothing. They still (!!!) haven't published any info from the panel they did with NASA. But they hyped it using words "soon" and even "very soon". That's disrespectful. It took them ages to publish stuff (for us here) they've showed to everyone on SXSW. That's, again, disrespectful.

Now, 24 hour marathon stream. Many (including me) thought they would release it afterwards, as they did before. But they didn't. Some people got offended. I, actually, did not, since they haven't promised to do so. I'm quite okay, got other stuff to do.

What I am against is the usage of vague statements. You have to be definitive, or otherwise, not to speak at all, IMO.

Ah, I see. I didn't mean hype to be a negative thing, I meant it as promotion. I didn't realise that hype was actually referring negatively to such things. I agree that they should tell us about some stuff that was said at SXSW, though. And maybe a little more on what can be done thanks to Unity 5.

Sorry if I'm not replying to your comments, they're being posted faster than I can respond!

[Shna_na]

I absolutely do NOT agree SQUAD is hyping up the coming updates. It's not SQUAD but rather, as usual, the community that has a bad case of update fever.

Surprisingly, I do somewhat agree with this. While Squad have been promoting this more than most other updates, the community have also exploded and pushed the news in a similar fashion to the events of the "big bang". I do think it has been a little more publicised though, maybe because it's a NASA collaboration. After all, it is supposed to raise awareness of the dangers and possibilities of an asteroid impacting Earth, as well as their importance in space exploration and scientific analysis.

[macegee]

Ah, I see. I didn't mean hype to be a negative thing, I meant it as promotion. I didn't realise that hype was actually referring negatively to such things.

Regardless, hype is a negative thing, so the poll in this thread is flawed.

[Red Iron Crown]

"On a scale of 1-10, pick one of these 5 options." Um...

[Shna_na]

"On a scale of 1-10, pick one of these 5 options." Um...

I see why that might seem a little bit pointless or contradicting, but having 10 options would result in very little variation between each point, and would cause confusion. The relevant ratings out of 10 are stated as a prefix of each option.

Regardless, hype is a negative thing, so the poll in this thread is flawed.

Ah, you say that, but this gauge is to measure your interest in hype. Your opinion stated here suggests to me that you fall into the category of either the first or second options.

[Javster]

I object to some people already having access to the ARM patch, when we pay for a game in Beta/Alpha, and therefore are playtesters.

[macegee]

Ah, you say that, but this gauge is to measure your interest in hype. Your opinion stated here suggests to me that you fall into the category of either the first or second options.

No. I don't fall into any of the categories of your poll (since it's flawed). I'm not against any promotion SQUAD might do, as long as it is being made in a respectful (to us, players) manner.

[Red Iron Crown]

I object to some people already having access to the ARM patch, when we pay for a game in Beta/Alpha, and therefore are playtesters.

Were you around when they shared internal versions with the community at large? The feedback was, frankly, awful. Any bug was reported over and over, with various accusations about the devs' programming skill, judgement, and parentage. I completely understand why they restricted testing to a smaller group that reliably produced useful feedback.

[BadManiac]

Can't answer stupid poll...

3/4 - I don't like the amount of spoilers they've given, but Squad can take as much time as they want to finish it.

[Shna_na]

I object to some people already having access to the ARM patch, when we pay for a game in Beta/Alpha, and therefore are playtesters.

While I do see your point and why it is relevant and valid, the people who have early access to patches are Squad's official QA (quality assessment) team. They are bound by an NDA (Non-disclosure agreement) which means that they can't utter a word to anyone about the features; They are also instructed to do certain things, as well as play it as a normal person would. This is, conveniently, a promotional tool by the developers to allow higher-ranking Youtubers to publicise the game and the coming update, with permission to do so in certain areas that are outlined in the previously mentioned NDA. This builds hype (whether you see it as positive or negative) for the game, as well as allowing the developers to indirectly inform their consumers of what is coming. In essence, these people are officially semi-employed by Squad to test the game for bugs and suggest improvements so that a stable version can be released to us.

[Guest]

There is a Devblog that the team run, I'm not sure if you're aware of it. Every Tuesday they give us an update of what's been happening (Devnote Tuesday).

I'm well aware of that page.

[Shna_na]

I'm well aware of that page.

Is it that you would like some more information from them? I kind of agree, but I think that this amount is enough and their time is better spent on actually developing the game.

Just a side note: Everyone seems to be getting mad at the poll. Is it really that bad? It's difficult to fit a "one size fits all" kind of answer into 100 characters, you know? Surely it's enough for you to be able to select one that outlines your opinion in its basic form. Even if it can't, just put your opinion as a comment rather than moaning about the poll without giving any input. You can't edit a poll, so once it's made it's made and there's no changing it, so complaining is useless. Constructive criticism is useful, however, so if you see something wrong with the poll just let me know how to improve it for next time rather than giving me nothing to build on. If you're just complaining and not giving someone any suggestions for improvement then you're as bad as the thing you're complaining about and don't really have the authority to do that, in my opinion. Saying it's bad without justifying why is plain wrong and is a hugely disrespectful thing to do. Rant over, continue with the discussion.

[The Destroyer]

To be honest, I kinda wish I never saw these hype videos, I mean, in addition to hype, it is SPOILERS, so instead of me seeing the parts for the first time and going WOW! These are amazing! Instead it's like: Mhm, good models. Time to build something.